An audit of home health charts as a basis for clinical pathway development.

摘要

The purpose of this study was to describe variables related to the prematurely born home health patient as a basis for clinical pathway development. A retrospective review of patient charts was conducted and data were collected regarding number of nursing visits, length of stay, and nursing activities in relation to premature home health patients.;The data indicated that this sample (N = 39) received a median of five visits and remained on service a median of 49 days. Many of the frequently performed nursing activities could have been performed by most pediatric nurses or in most doctor's offices. Nursing activities that were infrequently, or almost never, performed were nursing activities that required a specialized skill and knowledge base in regard to the premature infant. This study highlighted the need to develop tools, such as the clinical pathway, that will assist in standardizing home health nursing care for the premature infant.